Editing Things to Come (section)

==Duration, releases, and surviving versions==
The [[rough cut]] of the film was 130 minutes in length, while the version submitted for classification by the [[British Board of Film Censors]] (BBFC) was 117m 13s.<ref>''[https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/things-to-come-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0ymzk5nzu Things to Come]'' at [[BBFC]]</ref> By the time of the 21 February 1936 UK premiere and initial release, this had been reduced to 108m 41s,<ref name=Low>{{cite book |last=Low |first=Rachel |title=The History of the British Film 1929–1939 |publisher=George [[Allen & Unwin]] |location=London |year=1985 |isbn=0047910429 }}</ref> while the American print premiered on 18 April 1936 was further cut to 96m 31s. By late 1936, a 98m 07s print was in circulation in the UK,<ref name=Low/> and a 76m 07s print was resubmitted for classification by the BBFC and was passed – after further cuts – at 72m 13s for a reissue  in 1943 by Exclusive Films,<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.21</ref> a film distribution company co-founded by [[William Hinds]].

The 96m 31s American print was cut down to 93m 19s by the removal of three sections of footage for a reissue by [[British Lion Films]] in 1948, and subsequently to 92m 44s by the removal of one more segment. A continuity script exists for a version of approximately 106m 04s, which contains all the material in the 96m 31s and 92m 44s versions, plus a number of other sequences. It is not known if a version of this duration was actually in circulation at any time, or if it was simply an intermediate stage between the premiere and release versions.<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.24–26</ref>

For many years, the principal surviving version of the film was the 92m 44s print (in countries using [[PAL]] or [[SECAM]] video systems, it runs to 89m exactly). From at least the late-1970s until 2007, this was the only version "officially" available from the rights holders in the UK.<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.24</ref> In the United States, although the 92m 44s version was most prevalent, a version was also in circulation that included the four pieces of footage that were in the 96m 31s print, but not the 92m 44s version, although due to other cuts, actually ran shorter than the latter.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nickcooper.org.uk/ttc/gutlohn.htm | title=Things to Come - the Gutlohn Print }}</ref>